Yet three-quarters conduct business in other provinces,
one-quarter plan to expand in the next five years
MISSISSAUGA, ON, Oct. 7, 2014 /CNW/ - According to UPS Canada
survey data released today, 48 per cent of small and medium-sized
enterprises believe cross-provincial trade restrictions and red
tape inhibit their business growth. Despite the hurdles, 73 per
cent conducted business with customers or partners in other
provinces. Recent discussions to modernize Canada's internal trade would further enable
the remaining quarter of SMEs not currently doing business in other
provinces to do so in the next five years.
The UPS Canada Small Business Challenges survey is the
second of two parts. Along with general business performance
challenges, the first part examined e-commerce trends and supply
chain management.
"We continue to see growth within our country's borders, fueled
by market opportunity and customer demand," says Paul Gaspar, director of small business, UPS
Canada. "Our recent expansion in western Canada is a bellwether of the business growth
in the region. Making interprovincial and international trade less
cumbersome would be a significant benefit to our customers and
small business in general. Our global network and reputation for
reliability helps businesses leverage trade opportunities as
they grow within their borders and expand beyond their comfort
zone."
In fact, a UPS Leger survey from earlier this year showed more
than four in five Canadian businesses see global trade as a key
competitive advantage for Canada.
Approximately 84 per cent believe trade diversification beyond
North America is necessary.
Small business owners indicate 2014 has been a good year with 20
per cent exceeding annual targets and just over half are meeting
their goals. Success was attributed to a new product, service or
innovation at 42 per cent, with almost one-quarter claiming
expansion into other provinces.
Furthermore, in UPS research earlier this year overall
businesses were more likely to exceed their growth benchmarks with
a supply chain strategy in place (24.6%), rather than without
(16.3%).
UPS customer PÜR Gum sells their innovative aspartame-free
product across Canada and around
the world. "We're eager to sell our product to distributors around
the world," says Jay Klein, CEO and
founder of PÜR Gum. "Working with a partner to improve our supply
chain helped us expand our reach and consequently realize the need
for greater capacity. Just recently we moved into a new warehouse
which is approximately 25 times larger in size. We knew that a
supply chain strategy was necessary for our growth and having the
right partner has made all the difference."
Other important findings from the UPS Canada Small Business
Challenges survey include:
- Among businesses failing to meet their targets, staffing
costs/costs of business inputs is the top factor listed as a
restriction to growth (64%)
- 50 per cent of businesses claim that a lack of talent and
skills is having a negative impact on their business including the
following:
- Skilled trades people (34%
- Marketing (31%)
- Digital and mobile expertise (29%)
- Sales (28%)
"Four out of 10 businesses that do not have a supply chain
strategy believe their business is not large enough to warrant
one," adds Paul Gaspar. "Of those
who do have a supply chain strategy, 90 per cent agree that it
assists growth and helps them stay ahead of the competition. You
are never too small to have a supply chain strategy. With the right
partners, businesses can shift the momentum of their growth
exponentially whether to export inter-provincially or
internationally."
UPS Canada offers innovative
Small Business Solutions to help build out SMEs supply chain
strategies and realize the potential for efficiencies. Businesses
registered on the UPS Small Business Program receive a 20 per cent
discount on shipping.
UPS Canada also celebrates
Canada's over 1.1 million small-
and medium-sized businesses during Small Business Week taking place
October 19-25, 2014. Watch for more
SME success stories, including a PÜR Gum video case study, on the
http://www.pressroom.ups.com/pressroom/ #UPSSME
Methodology
This survey was completed on-line between
August 11 to August 22, 2014 using
Leger's online panel, LegerWeb, with a sample of 302. Individuals
working for, or running, a business that currently spends a minimum
of $5,000 annually on shipping were
interviewed. Only those at a director or senior manager level or
above qualified. A probability sample of the same size would yield
a margin of error of +/- 5.7%, 19 times out of 20.
About UPS
UPS (NYSE:UPS) is a global leader in
logistics, offering a broad range of solutions including the
transportation of packages and freight; the facilitation of
international trade, and the deployment of advanced technology to
more efficiently manage the world of business. Headquartered in
Atlanta, Ga., UPS serves more than
220 countries and territories worldwide. The company can be found
on the web at ups.com® and its corporate blog can be
found at blog.ups.com. To get UPS news direct, visit
pressroom.ups.com/RSS.
SOURCE UPS Canada Ltd.